


I Love You So Much It's Scary

by nargles_exist



Category: Free!
Genre: Anxiety, Canon Compliant, Family, Halloween, M/M, Making Friends, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2020-11-03
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:42:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27363700
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nargles_exist/pseuds/nargles_exist
Summary: Kisumi and Asahi are happy to get a visit from Hayato. Since it's almost Halloween, they have to go trick or treating! Hayato might be growing up, but he still needs his big brother, and Kisumi will always be there for him.
Relationships: Shigino Kisumi/Shiina Asahi
Comments: 3
Kudos: 23





	I Love You So Much It's Scary

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be for the Free! Halloweek event, but as always, I am late. One of the prompts was 'trick or treat', so I tried to tailor that to a Tokyo Halloween. I love Kisumi and Hayato's closeness, and I've always thought that Asahi would be readily accepted as a second big brother. There's no real plot, just kind of meandering thoughts about their family and domestic dynamic. I hope you enjoy it!

The plaza was crowded with costumed children. Some were tiny and clinging to their parents’ hands, and older kids were chasing each other through the throng in a perennial game of tag. Kisumi sat on a bench and let the raucous joy wash over him. A lot of the adults appeared to have come from work and were not costumed; this candy rally was for children, after all. Kisumi, though, was fully in the spirit of Halloween, despite it being a week until the actual date. 

When his parents had asked if Hayato could visit him for the weekend, he had readily accepted. He rarely said ‘no’ to a visit from his brother, and he genuinely loved to spend time with him. The two boys had immediately agreed that finding a Halloween event was absolutely necessary, and Kisumi had listened to Hayato’s excitement about his awesome costume for several days before the younger boy had arrived on the train. 

Tokyo had several events organized for the last few weeks of October, many sponsored by big department stores or shotengai. Hayato wasn’t a little boy anymore, and he was probably almost too old for the children’s events, but Kisumi was glad to see that there were many other children that appeared to be around his age. It was not hard to spot Hayato in the crowd, and Kisumi could easily watch him from his spot on the edges.

A big fan of the Boku no Hero Academia series, Hayato had convinced their mother to buy him a Deku costume and accessories. The rich teal color of the suit and the deep red of his high top sneakers and utility belt contrasted pleasingly, and Hayato was especially proud of the fact that the belt had real pouches. He had not been allowed to color his hair green, but he had the hood with the rabbit ears that hid his natural pink color. And Kisumi had used a makeup pencil to give him freckles.

Kisumi’s own costume was simpler and less specific, but it was still recognizable, and he enjoyed wearing it. He was dressed as a cowboy from American westerns, with black boots coming up over his jeans, a pink plaid shirt and faux leather vest, a bandana, and a black cowboy hat. It was not enough to make him feel silly, but it was enough to show that he was enjoying the spirit of the holiday. And he would do whatever it took to make Hayato feel comfortable. 

He had been somewhat worried about that, since Hayato was not a very outgoing child, and his shyness did not show any signs of disappearing as he became a young man. He had a couple of friends he would spend time with at school, in Iwatobi, but he had no friends here in Tokyo. Aside from their Uncle Katsumi, Kisumi and his friends were the only people Hayato knew here, and Kisumi was worried that he was getting to the age where he would be bored by hanging out with his older brother instead of kids his own age. 

It had been shocking and relieving to show up to the shotengai Trick or Treating party and be immediately accosted by a girl wearing an All Might costume. She, a boy in a Spiderman suit, and a child of indeterminate gender who was dressed as a black cat had joined their group and then, shortly after assimilating Hayato, they had evicted Kisumi. He was still watching, ready to step in if it looked like Hayato was uncomfortable, but so far, he seemed fine with being towed around by a female All Might and her posse. 

"Well, hi there, pardner," said a voice, very close to his ear. Kisumi smiled and accepted the Starbucks cup that was held in front of his face. "If you're looking for something to ride, I can make a suggestion."

"How long have you been working on that line?" Kisumi asked Asahi, shifting over to make space for his boyfriend on the bench. Practice didn't stop for Halloween, so Asahi hadn't been able to spend the morning with them, but he had promised to meet them for the festivities and to bring coffee. Kisumi ran an approving eye over Asahi's outfit. His vampire costume was mostly reliant on the cloak: black with a blood red satin lining. But someone had smudged some dark eyeliner around his eyes, and he looked broody and mysterious. 

"Since you told me your costume," replied Asahi, smirking at him. "Where's Hayato?"

Kisumi pointed him out across the mass of children, and they sat cuddled together against the chill autumn breeze, drinking their coffee and talking about all of the cute costumes. 

Before too long, Kisumi looked up to see Hayato approaching them, his bag heavy with candy, and his new friends right on his heels. “Got all your candy already?” asked Kisumi. The sun had barely set, and he had expected to be out and about for much longer than this. 

“Um… Nii-san…” began Hayato, shifting awkwardly and not looking at Kisumi directly. 

“What?”

“We want to go to the haunted house in Shibuya,” announced All Might firmly. “Our parents said we could go if we found a grown up to go with us.”

“That’s you,” said the black cat. 

“I see,” said Kisumi. He looked at Hayato, trying to determine whether or not he really wanted to go with these kids. “I don’t know, Hayato,” he said, contemplatively. “It’s getting colder, and we didn’t bring your purple jacket…” That was their code word. If Hayato mentioned ‘purple jacket’, it meant he was not comfortable and wanted an excuse to leave. It was Kisumi’s way of giving him an out without making him lose face in front of his peers. 

“I don’t need it,” replied Hayato, looking him in the eye. “My costume is warm enough.”

“If you’re sure,” said Kisumi, “then I guess I don’t mind taking you.”

The children cheered and jumped up and down in excitement. Kisumi made them point out their parents so that he could get their contact information in case of emergencies, and while he was doing that, Asahi looked up the haunted house location on his phone and figured out the route. 

“All right, it looks like it’s only about a ten minute walk from the station,” announced Asahi, as Kisumi returned. “And a 500 yen entry fee.”

“Who _are_ you?” demanded All Might, her hands on her hips. 

“That’s Asahi-nii-san,” responded Hayato as Asahi sputtered. “He’s my brother’s boyfriend.”

“Hmph,” said All Might, looking skeptical. 

“Okay,” said Kisumi, trying not to laugh. He clapped his hands. “Stay together, and let’s head towards the metro station.”

The children swarmed off ahead of them, leaving Asahi and Kisumi to hurry along behind them. Hayato had thrust his bag of candy at Kisumi before chasing off after his new friends, and Kisumi was trying to tuck it into his shoulder bag as he walked and still keep one eye on the kids. 

“I don’t suppose those parents gave you that 500 yen, did they?” muttered Asahi, holding his cape up over his arm so that it didn’t billow out behind him. “Can’t say I blame them for jumping on free babysitting, though.”

“It’s fine, Asahi,” replied Kisumi. “I don’t mind. I’m just glad Hayato is coming out of his shell.”

“Being dragged out.”

“Well, he seems fine with it.” Kisumi smiled. “I was worried he’d be bored with just the two of us.”

“Nah, he loves you too much for that,” said Asahi firmly. 

“I don’t know,” said Kisumi. “He’s growing up. A year ago, he would have been holding my hand right now.”

“Do you want me to hold your hand?”

Kisumi gave him a sideways glance. They didn’t usually display their affection in public, but he was feeling sort of nostalgic and melancholy… “A little bit.” He smiled as Asahi took his hand, their fingers slotting together naturally. 

They corralled the four children into one section of the train, where they were remarkably well behaved, except for the excited whispers and hushed squeals that attracted a few glances from other passengers. Kisumi had to relinquish Asahi’s hand to hold onto the overhead bar, but Asahi’s shoulder was pressed comfortably against his, so he didn’t mourn the loss too much. 

There was a bit of a line at the haunted house, but they got in pretty quickly. Kisumi paid the entry fee for all of them, and they each received a stamp on the back of their hands. He wasn’t a huge fan of horror movies and haunted houses, but he wasn’t that easy to scare. Still, the organizers of this haunted house had done a good job. It was a mix of live actors and mechanical devices, and the jumpscares got him a few times. 

The children were screaming their heads off. It seemed to be partly out of fear and partly out of joy--it wasn’t often that they got the chance to scream freely, and they were taking full advantage of the opportunity. Hayato was clinging to Kisumi’s waist, his face tucked into the plaid fabric of his shirt. It wasn’t easy to walk like that, and they shuffled along slowly. Asahi wasn’t doing much better, as the other three children were taking refuge under his cape, and he couldn’t roust them no matter how often he turned and twisted, trying to pull his cape away from them. 

Kisumi laughed and rubbed Hayato’s back gently. 

They all made it out safely, albeit with much hullabaloo. Kisumi texted the parents and arranged to meet them back at the train station near the shotengai. This time, as they boarded the train, Hayato was holding his hand. 

Spiderman and the black cat were returned successfully, but they had to wait quite some time for All Might's guardian to pick her up. Kisumi treated the children to ice cream, and they were calmly finishing their cones when a frazzled woman rushed up to them. All Might's mother was very apologetic, and she tried to give Kisumi some money for his trouble, but he refused. It was really too awkward. And he kind of felt that it was worth it if Hayato was having a good time and possibly making a friend. 

All Might hugged Hayato so hard that she lifted him off the ground, and she promised to talk to him soon. Kisumi had a quiet conversation with the child's mother and asked if her child could email. He promised to set Hayato up with an email so that they could continue their long-distance friendship. 

After All Might and her mother left, Hayato informed Kisumi that he already _had_ an email. Their mother was tired of using her own email to register for online games, so she had gotten him his own last year. 

“How come you never email me, then?” demanded Asahi, huffing in mock indignation. 

“Cuz I don’t know what your email is,” replied Hayato, giggling.

“He’s got you there, Asahi,” Kisumi pointed out. 

“Hey, no fair ganging up on me,” protested Asahi. He grabbed Hayato and hoisted him over his shoulder. “Let’s go home.”

Kisumi tidied away their trash and then followed them, feeling happily content as he looked at his handsome boyfriend and giggling brother. He smiled as Asahi paused and turned to look back at him, waiting for him to catch up. 

Later, as he climbed into bed, he sank into the pillows and sighed. He hadn’t realized how tired he was; kids were exhausting, even the well-behaved ones. Opening his eyes, he looked over at Asahi, who was frowning in concentration at his phone. Kisumi wiggled closer and curled up behind him, pressing a kiss to his jaw and looking over his shoulder. “You can do ‘rows’,” he said, after a minute. 

Asahi made a soft grunt sound and entered the letters Kisumi had suggested. He played a word game on his phone before bed when he needed to calm his body and mind enough to sleep. He was really very good at it, and it was rare that Kisumi could find a word that he hadn’t already seen. But sometimes Kisumi liked to just hold him and watch him play. 

“You okay?” he asked. “Your heart is kinda fast.” 

“A little squiggly,” replied Asahi, sighing. “Restless, I guess. Prob’ly from the haunted house. You know, things jumping out at us. It just got me all worked up.”

Kisumi had been with Asahi long enough to know what his vague and creative descriptions meant, and he also knew that the best thing he could do was just be there quietly while Asahi used his tools to distract his mind and make his body realize there was no danger. He squeezed Asahi a little tighter and changed the subject slightly. “Thanks for going along with the change of plans this evening.”

Asahi shrugged slightly. “I don’t mind. You know I’d do anything for Hayato.”

That was true, and every time Kisumi witnessed it, he felt content in the knowledge that he had picked the right person to date. There were many reasons he had been attracted to Asahi, but that was a big one. “I know,” said Kisumi. “I love you.”

Dropping his phone to his chest, Asahi turned his head so that he could kiss Kisumi. “Love you, too,” he mumbled. They kissed again. “You think he’s asleep?” he asked, a moment later.

Kisumi laughed softly. “Not soundly enough for us to do anything,” he said firmly. He didn’t have a problem with Hayato knowing that they kissed and touched each other (though Hayato was still definitely of an age where he thought kissing was gross and didn’t want to know anything about it), but he didn’t think he could ever recover if Hayato walked in on them. Asahi knew this, and he wasn’t really seriously suggesting they do anything. Kisumi kissed him again, briefly. “You just focus on your game,” he said. 

He had turned over onto his own side of the bed when his eyes had started closing on their own, and he didn’t know how long he slept, but he woke up to a dark room. 

“Kis… Nii-san…”

“Hayato?” He rubbed at his eyes and peered into the gloom, making out the shape of his younger brother standing by the bed. “What is it?”

“I can’t sleep out there,” whispered Hayato. “Can I get in your bed?”

“Did you have scary dreams?” Kisumi asked. And when Hayato nodded, Kisumi lifted the blanket in invitation and let Hayato clamber over him and settle between himself and Asahi. Asahi shifted a little in his sleep but didn’t make any protest or visibly wake. 

“Is it okay?” asked Hayato, and Kisumi’s eyes were adjusting enough to the dark to see the crinkle in the boy’s forehead. “Asahi doesn’t mind?”

“Of course not,” whispered Kisumi. “You can come to either of us anytime you’re scared.” He pulled his little brother against his chest, pressing a kiss to his hair. “Just don’t put your cold feet on him.”

“I’m wearing socks.”

Laughing, Kisumi said, “Then everything’s perfect.”


End file.
